Books by Date
Inca Gold by Clive Cussler
Travels in the Scriptorium by Paul Auster
Youndhusband – the Last Great Imperial Adventurer by Patrick French
Like Hidden Fire: the Plot to Bring Down the British Empire by Peter Hopkirk
Mind Over Matter by Ranulph Fiennes
The Lost Men by Kelly Tyler Lewis
A harrowing and interesting story, but it really does pale in comparison to Shackleton and Mawsons’ experiences.
Mawson’s Will by Lennard Bickel
An great book, if a little self conscious, but the events it details, wow…
The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry
Terra Antarctica by William L. Fox
The Coldest March by Susan Solomon
Bad Luck and Trouble, by Lee Child
The Unburied, by Charles Palliser
The Road, by Cormac McCarthy
What an incredible book — Cormac McCarthy is SO great!
The Last Colony, by John Scalzi
The Ghost Brigades, by John Scalzi
Market Forces, by Richard K. Morgan
Old Man’s War, by John Scalzi
The Rediscovery of Man, by Cordwainer Smith
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke
The Yiddish Policemen’s Unions, by Michael Chabon
The Ministry of Special Cases, by Nathan Englander
Underworld, by Graham Hancock
Heaven’s Mirror, by Graham Hancock
This is ostensibly non-fiction, but it’s highly speculative. A hell of a lot of fun, nonetheless.
Rain Dogs, by Sean Doolittle
The Galton Case, by Ross MacDonald
Miami Purity, by Vicki Hendricks
Drive, by James Sallis
The Blue Hammer, by Ross MacDonald
Devil in the Mountains, by Simon Lamb
Child of God, by Cormac McCarthy
Accelerando, by Charles Stross
The Jennifer Morgue, by Charles Stross
The Hard Way, by Lee Child
The Wasp Factory, by Iain Banks
Number 9 Dream, by David Mitchell
Case Histories, by Kate Atkinson
Black Swan Green, by David Mitchell
Ghostwritten, by David Mitchell
”...People would like to find in words an expression of the way the world works, and they are regularly disappointed.”
I liked this thought provoking book very much.
Um, yeah. Non-fiction and interesting to some extent, but filled with speculative leaps. Still, I love this stuff.
Explorer, by C. J. Cherryh
Defender, by C. J. Cherryh
Penny Dreadful, by Will Christopher Baer
Kiss Me, Judas, by Will Christopher Baer
Hell’s Half Acre, by Will Christopher Baer
The Chinese Opium Wars, by Jack Beeching
Part of my desire to learn more about China and Chinese history, in order to provide for Signe a wealth of knowledge as she grows. At least that’s the idea.
Earthquake Weather, by Tim Powers
Nanda Devi: The Tragic Expedition, by John Roskelley
Iron Council, by China Mieville
Desperate Measures, by Kate Wilhelm
Survival of the Fittest, by Jonathan Kellerman
Experation Date, by Tim Powers
Pain Management, by Andrew Vachss
The Drawing of the Dark, by Tim Powers
The Anubis Gates, by Tim Powers
The Atrocity Archives, by Charles Stross
The Light Ages, by Ian R. MacLeod
Touching the Void, by Joe Simpson
Veniss Underground, by Jeff VanderMeer
McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern – Issue Number 13, Edited by Chris Ware
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
The Enemy by Lee Child
Yet another Reacher novel. This one isn’t quite a good as the previous, but it was still fun.
The Return of the Dancing Master by Henning Mankell
The Small Boat of Great Sorrows by Dan Fesperman
A Lie in the Dark by Dan Fesperman
In the Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami
Minus 148° by Art Davidson
Road Rage by Ruth Rendell
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown
Endurance by Alfred Lansing
The Early Climbs—Deborah and The Mountain of my Fear by David Roberts
The Maze by Panos Karnezis
Moneyball by Michael Lews
The Last Place on Earth by Roland Huntford
My favorite of the books I’ve read about the search for the south pole. Truly an amazing accomplishment. In parts, a demonstration of immense courage and determination, and also stunning unpreparedness.
Between Meals—An Appetite for Paris by A. J. Liebling
The Lost Daughters of China by Karin Evans
The Worst Journey in the World by Apsley Cherry-Garrard
A mammoth, sprawling, fabulous story of the ill-fated R.F. Scott quest for the south pole. Cherry-Garrard was one of the survivors of the trip, and his book is amazing—the unfiltered brutality of the terrain, and the sometimes-idiotic decisions that were made—stunnng.
Song of the Dodo by David Quammen
End of the Earth by Peter Matthiessen
Icarus by Russell Andrews
Gideon by Russell Andrews
fun, but not nearly as good as the reacher books.
The Boilerplate Rhino by David Quammen
First book of 2004, and an excellent one at that.
Quin’s Shanghai Circus by Edward Whittemore
Gun Monkeys by Victor Gischler
The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester
Persuader by Lee Child
Dreamcatcher by Stephen King
The Golden Gizmo by Jim Thompson
The Third Twin by Ken Follett
Ick.
Jericho Mocaic by Edward Whittemore
The Etched City by KJ Bishop
Gorgeous and evocative, this is a brilliant first novel.
Point of Impact by Stephen Hunter
This was an entertaining romp, but not nearly as fluidly pulled off as the Reacher books.
Nile Shadows by Edward Whittemore
Again Whittemore stuns me. This volume was a little more of a slog than the first two, but still amazing.
Running Blind by Lee Child
Jerusalem Poker by Edward Whittemore
An absolutely stunning book; sweet, odd, and fabulous.
Sinai Tapestry by Edward Whittemore
The first volume of the Jerusalem Quartet. This is a little known book, but SUPER fun.
Echo Burning by Lee Child
Krakatoa by Simon Winchester
Subtitled “The day the world exploded: August 27, 1883,” this is a fascinating book.
Tripwire by Lee Child
Die Trying by Lee Child
Without Fail by Lee Child
Without Fail by Lee Child
Watch the North Wind Rise by Robert Graves
Metaplanetary by Tony Daniel
Grrr. Volume one of a series, and not mentioned anywhere except the last page of the book. Bad.
Killing Floor by Lee Child
What a fun read. It’s quick, engrossing, intense, and very violent. Perfect “summer” fare, at least for me.
Lee Child has his own site as well.
The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break by Steven Sherrill
An interesting read, quirky and funny, with a strong undertone of sadness. I liked it.
The Music of the Spheres by Elizabeth Redfern
Feersum Endjinn by Iain M. Banks
This book was interesting, but overall I found it to be a pain in the ass to read. A significant portion is written phonetically, and wow is that tough to wade through… Not my favorite of Banks’ work at all.
Look to Windward by Iain M. Banks
I’ve been a fan of Banks for years now. Really, since I read Wasp Factory, which came out a long time ago now… Anyway, this is a fun book, though not as twisted as the Wasp Facory or as intricate as Consider Phlebas, but a good entertaining read that leaves you with things to mull over once you close the book.
Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds
Interesting, if a little boring to start. I wasn’t fully engaged with the story for 150-200 pages. It did get very engrossing by the end, though, and I did enjoy it.
Book of Illusions by Paul Auster
All I can say is, “Wow.”
Baudolino by Umberto Eco
This was a fun book. It’s dense, and I came away wishing I knew which portions of the book were factual history and which were complete creations or supposition. And yes, there are portions where the truth is obvious. Much of the fall of Constantinople, though, I know nothing about.
Annals of the Former World by John McPhee
I really like John McPhee’s work. He’s certainly not a minimist, but I’ve always enjoyed the slow, deliberate approach he takes. This book may be the best example of his work I’ve ever read, in his slow, rambling approach fits the subject matter perfectly.
The book is about the continental formation of the US. It’s broken into 5 parts, 4 of which are spent with different geologists. By and large it’s fascinating. I did find the section on California a bit, um, uninteresting, but that may be just me.
If you have any interest at all in plate tectonics, I highly recommend this book.
Travels With a Tangerine: A Journey in the Footnotes of Ibn Battutah by Tim MacKintosh-Smith
I found this book surprisingly engrossing. It had less to do with Ibn battutah than I expected, however. It’s a funny and engaging read, and adds to my desire to see this part of the world.
After the Quake by Haruki Murakami
Wow, what can be said. Murakami is, IMHO, one of the greatest writers of our time. These stories of loneliness and loss are exquisite.
One note of confusion, though. The dust jacket refers to the “unforgettable title story,” which doesn’t actually seem to be in the book. :-)
Where the Sea Used to Be by Rick Bass
This was an interesting book. Gorgeous words, passages, descriptions… and ultimately sort of boring main characters. I continue to think that Bass’ non-fiction is where he really shines.
The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan
This book is stunning. I’ve wanted to read it since I saw a mention in the New York Times Review of Books, but never got around to it until now.
The whole idea is pretty simple—we as human beings participate in the spread of plants in much the same way that bees do. What we think of as cultivation and domestication is, at least in part, a very successful survival strategy on the part of the plants themseles.
One of the plants he talks about (the book is comprised of what are essentially four essays) is the potato. Specifically, a genetically modified potato called NewLeaf potatoes, developed by Monsanto. This potato contains a genetic sequence of a natural insecticide called Bt. The frightening thing is this. You assume that genetically modified foods (and there are many on the market) have been tested by the FDA. To the contrary, the FDA “operates under the assumption that the genetically modified plants are ‘substantially equivalent’ to ordinary plants”, and the regulation of them has been “voluntary since 1992.” Even more frightening, the FDA “doesn’t even officially regard the NewLeaf as a food.” What it comes down to is this—since the NewLeaf contains Bt, it is not a food but rather a pesticide. And that falls under the purvue of the EPA. And the EPA assumes that since the potato is safe, and Bt by itself is safe, the two genetically stuck together must be safe.
The Botany of Desire is well written, thoughtful, and funny. Don’t miss it.
The Nightingale’s Song by Robert Timberg
I just finished reading this riveting book about the military mindset, wrapped up in the stories of five men, Viet Nam, and the Iran-Contra fiasco. I can’t recommend this book highly enough. If you’ve even a passing interest in history or politics, this is definitely one to read.
Swords of Haven by Simon Green
This book was fun, but pretty fluffy, and all things considered not that good. I was in the mood for it, though.
A German Requiem by Philip Kerr
This series is really excellent. As I said before, very atmospheric, very moody. I felt the first time that they really captured the feel of Nazi Berlin. I’m not so sure of that this time. Great fun to read, though.
The Pale Criminal by Philip Kerr
This is the second time I’ve read this book (and the series). I love it. Really gripping and atmospheric.
The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
Ringworld by Larry Niven
The Lives of Christopher Chant by Diana Wynne Jones
The Magicians of Caprona by Diana Wynne Jones
Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones
The Blue Hammer by Ross McDonald
